With cruises growing in popularity amongst tourists in the last few decades, MLAs from the coastal belt in Karnataka, who met on Thursday, mooted a proposal to start cruise tourism in the State.
Briefing presspersons after the meeting, Mankala S. Vaidya, Minister for Fisheries and Ports Inland Transport, said a proposal on developing a cruise terminal in Karnataka was discussed at length at the meeting. The plan is to set up two new ports in Mangaluru and Karwar, he said.
World Fisheries Day
The Minister said a programme to mark World Fisheries Day will be held on November 21 at the banquet hall in Vidhana Soudha. The Fisheries Department has decided to introduce solar powered e-vehicles with cold storage facilities for sale of seafood, he said.
“We plan to give 300 e-vehicles to fish vendors across the State and in the first phase 150 will be given in Bengaluru through the Fisheries Development Corporation,” he said.
High speed corridor
Meanwhile, Ministers Dinesh Gundu Rao and Laxmi Hebbalkar, who are in charge of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi, respectively, held discussions with the European Business and Technology Organisation regarding the construction of the Bengaluru-Mangaluru Integrated Green Field High Speed Corridor.
This corridor will be helpful for the development of Mangaluru as well as other cities along the route. The proposal is to construct a six to eight lane high-speed corridor, said Mr. Gundu Rao.
“The high speed corridor from Bengaluru to Mangaluru will be very helpful in boosting the economy of Mangaluru. Connecting the corridor to Mangaluru port will also help in the growth of business enterprises,” he said.
Stating that the corridor route map needs to be discussed in detail, the Minister assured that a meeting will soon be held to discuss the project with the Chief Minister and PWD Minister. “The State government will encourage such projects which will help in the sustainable development of Mangaluru. Private partnership is also needed for the implementation of such projects,” he added.
